BPAs in Plastics...all roads lead to bad news for your health

latimesblogs.latimes.com/booster_shots/2008/09/bisphenol-a-if.html

For decades we've gone about our daily lives, steeped in all sorts of plastics. Now, it seems, all is not ok in the analysis of what BPAs, an additive to plastic to make it stronger, are most likely doing to your body.

The National Institutes of Health and Yale University have released more news about the harmful effects of BPAs on your body. I'd say the science is in on BPAs based on the number of credible medical reports that have come out over the last 5 years on this topic.

BPAs are basically synthetic chemicals put into plastics to make them stronger. The science is pointing to this chemical additive as a probable source of damage to our nervous systems, brain cells, endocrine system, hormone system, and reproductive systems. These effects are even worse in babies and in a fetus, where brain damage and birth defects are being attributed to this chemical.

The leaching of the BPAs becomes worse when the plastic is heated, such as a water bottle left in your car during a hot summer day, or a baby bottle intentionally warmed in a microwave for a warm milk before bedtime.

Look, you have to realize that in our society, the law suits against the manufacturers and everyone else that has a hand in this stuff would be astronomical, akin to the tobacco industry, so don't wait around for another decade to pass before you give up your plastic food containers and drinking bottles. The science is in, this stuff is bad. Get a hold of a stainless steel or glass drinking bottle, and filter your own water at home or at work. Tell your friends too, it's one of the best gifts you can give anyone...knowledge. Especially for pregnant women or families with newborns.

There's no shortage of data on this one, if you want to spend more time tracking it down, this link above will take you to a few more links. In the end, you will realize that it's just not worth taking the chance. You can't act on every cancer scare that comes by, it's just not practical. Getting plastic out of your food chain, as best as you can, I'd say is in the top 3 things we all should be trying to do to improve our health.

Not incidentally, getting plastic out of our lives would also please the planet no end. California alone puts 1 Billion plastic water bottles into the ground each year...that's a lot of plastic...plastic that will be around for another 10k years...give or take a few thousand years. Do we really need this stuff?